


Jump Ship

by MintChocolateLeaves



Series: Launch Failure [1]
Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Drabble Length Chapters, F/M, M/M, Space Pirates AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-24
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2019-10-15 18:34:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17534024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MintChocolateLeaves/pseuds/MintChocolateLeaves
Summary: Space pirate 'KID' commandeers the space vessel of Captain Kudo Shinichi. It seems like it should be an easy job, something that should pay him well, but the thief quickly finds that the space craft holds more secrets than answers. Space!Pirate AU.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by asks on tumblr. Uploading it here because tumblr seemed to like it a lot.

“You know,” The pirate says as he climbs aboard, followed behind by his closest officers, all of them wearing white suits, “If your military cared so much about being commandeered, they would put more thought into their security systems.”

From his station in the ships bridge, Shinichi lifts his head, eyes narrowed into a glare. All pirates have their own insignia’s, their own way of showing which flag they fly under, and the white suits belong to KID.

The pirate captain is younger than Shinichi had expected. His hair is tousled, from what he can see from under the top hat. A monocle covers his eye where on others, there would be an eye patch.

“If you were worth the reputation that precedes you,” Shinichi says, crossing his arms as he looks the pirate up and down. Smart, overly so, although the pirates aboard KID’s ship have always been known for the pride they put into their appearance, “then you would know this isn’t a military ship.”

KID offers a smile. It’s a mix between confusion and amusement. His lips quirk up just enough for Shinichi to think this is somewhat planned, on his side.

“You must be the captain,” KID says. “We’ll have to make you our newest hostage then. Maybe while we’ve got you imprisoned, you’ll be able to tell us what kind of ship this is.”

From behind him, Shinichi can hear two growls. Low, almost feral in nature. It doesn’t take him long to realise the sounds belong to his quartermasters, Toyama and Hattori. It’s only the three of them in control of the bridge, but already, Shinichi has the impression that they’d be able to come out victorious against KID and his crew.

Well… call it intuition.

“It’s alright, you two,” Shinichi says, lifting a hand up, signalling for them to quieten. The growls fade away to grumbling, and he has to take a moment to stifle his amusement. “We’ll stand down.”

Now, he lifts his hands up, offers a small smile to KID. He says, “there’s nothing on this ship that would be use to pirates, but feel free to search.”

KID frowns.

“You might want to take my colleagues prisoner too,” Shinichi jerks his head back towards his friends, lets his smile shift into a smirk. “They’re quite the loyal type.”

KID pauses. Then, he mirrors Shinichi’s own smirk, nodding towards the two who have joined him. One woman, one male. Opposite to KID’s top hat, they wear masks, as if they have stepped out from a masquerade.

“Won’t the two of you secure the captains  _colleagues?”_  The thief asks.

The female moves first. She wears a filigree lace mask, the design asymmetric but with a pattern that reminds Shinichi almost of a peacock. She’s not very elegant when she moves, but what she lacks in grace, she makes up for with speed. One moment she is beside KID, the next, she is past Shinichi, her hands tying rope around Toyama’s wrists.

Not that rope will be enough to keep her bound.

The male moves afterwards. He wears a black Giglio mask, lined with gold. His movements are elegant, precise, and he sweeps past, paying attention only to his task. No emotion shows on his features, except possibly, exasperation.

“Come along now then,  _Captain,”_ KID says, once Hattori is bound as well. “You won’t make me tie you up now, will you? You’ll come along nicely.”

Shinichi pauses, considers it. Then, he steps forward, holding both wrists together. He says, “What kind of captain would I be, if I did not lead by example?”


	2. Chapter 2

They leave the prisoners in a cell below deck, far out of the reach of the bridge. Then, Kaito sends his thieves to search the ship, waits to see what they will find.

“Akako,” he says, his voice picked up by the small wireless microphone that he’d inserted into his inner ear months before. Small enough to get past any checks that might come their way, “keep an eye on the hostages, see how they act without anyone around. Record the camera footage.”

“Right,” the woman drawls in response. He imagines scarlet eyes staring him down, considering whether the request is worthy of her time. She must decide in his favour because she adds, “Something seems off about that ship.”

Yes. Kaito’s beginning to think so. A captain who gives in to becoming a hostage without putting up a fight. The two quartermasters who seem… odd.

There’s a mystery there, and Kaito cares little for detective work.

“It’ll be worth it,” Kaito continues, turning to look around the ship. He says, “This ship gets signals from both the military and the government on a bi-daily basis, there’s a reason. This ship is important.”

“If it’s so important,” Akako continues, “then why were the security systems so easy to break into?”

Kaito doesn’t have an answer for that. Luckily, he doesn’t need to come up with one - he’s saved by Aoko’s return.

Beneath the mask, confusion swims in her eyes. She makes her way towards him, stands rigid and waits for him to finish his call.

“Keep me updated,” Kaito says, dismissing Akako. The voice in his head seems to disappear into a light static. It’ll return, he knows, if either of them say the other’s name. “What have you found, Aoko?”

Aoko waits a moment. Then, slightly dejected she says, “We couldn’t find any other staff.”

Kaito stiffens. He says, “What?”

“I mean exactly that,” Aoko says. “There’s no one else aboard. I asked Saguru to conduct a scan on the ship, but there’s no one but those three and our thieves.”

It’s impossible. As large a ship as this is… how are they running it without a crew? There should be at least fifty - if not more.

“There’s a trick here.” Kaito says, crossing his arms. “And we’re going to figure it out. Let’s go talk to their precious Captain.”


	3. Chapter 3

Shinichi waits in the hold and decides that there's nothing he can do but standby, to await any further developments and decide his next course of action when he has more information.

Hattori and Toyama have been taken away from him, split apart from him, and he knows that they're tense, that they want to fight back. They won't - not because they think they cannot handle a fight, but because Shinichi has ordered them to stand down.

He lets out a sigh, glances around the room that is his cell, and thinks about how - strangely - it's not as intimidating as it seems. He's used to this, far more than being a captain. Being trapped inside a cell isn't exactly new procedure.

Shinichi breathes out a sigh.

There's a click and then, the door swings open, bringing him face to face with the pirate captain KID. Shinichi leans back against the wall, focuses his eyes on the pirate. There's not much he can read in the man’s expression, except that his lips are tightened, stress coiling in his shoulders.

"Where are the other staff?" KID asks as way of hello.

He's followed by one of his masked crew, the woman with the filigree mask. She crosses her arms, standing just behind KID, watching him. If she's listening to try and figure out what he's keeping hidden away, Shinichi can quite calmly say that she's not going to find anything.

He's always been good at keeping secrets.

"I suppose you've placed them in the hold," Shinichi says, "a little bit away from me in here."

"A crew of three," KID says, "is no crew at all. Where are the _others."_

Shinichi sits back in his cell, crosses his arms and quirks an eyebrow. He says, "You won't find anyone else on this ship, KID."

"We'll find their hiding places," KID says, and there is a malicious sort of glee in his tone, a challenge for him to take, "and we'll be much kinder, if we don't have to search for so long."

It's a threat, but such threats are empty when there's no crew to be harmed. There is no harming people who do not exist, no matter how forceful KID thinks he can act. A pirate is nothing but empty threats, and if he decides to kill them, then Shinichi will give the orders to fight back.

"That would be a shame," Shinichi says, "but as I said, you won't find anyone else. Search as much as you want."

KID leans forward. He says, "I will find out your secrets, _Captain._ Whether you want me to or not."

"You can try," Shinichi says. And then, after a second, lips tugging up into a feral sort of smile. "I have more of a chance learning your secrets, than you do of learning mine, Kaitou KID. At least I have a name to go off."

KID snarls.

"You, meanwhile," Shinichi says, "have an unmanned ship and three hostages who won't so much as tell you our _names. Good luck."_


	4. Chapter 4

So, talking with their damned captain was fucking _useless._

Kaito barely restrains the growl that rises in his throat, manages to push it down long enough to get out of the room away from the man. What a _bust._ He hates solving mysteries on premise, enjoys keeping secrets and letting them remain kept.

But not here, not when he's on a ship large enough to house a hundred and there are only three.

Aoko beside him, looks almost like she wants to tear her mask off and throw it at the wall. No, rather, she looks like she wants to throw her fist through the wall.

"I want their names." Kaito says, voice low. He knows that if he connects to Akako's feed, she'll only call him a child, say that he's moments away from a tantrum, but there's frustration running through him, and he hates feeling frustrated.

They've just taken over a ship, it shouldn't be leaving him feeling anything but _euphoria._

Aoko clicks her tongue. She says, "we can see if there's any records on the ship that would give us information, but with the amount of confidence there, I doubt we'll find any documents out in the open."

"Anything you can find," Kaito continues, as if he doesn't care. "I want their names, I want their shoe sizes. I want to know what fucking _cereal_ they eat, and what proportions they eat every day. I want everything we can get."

"That's not very rational." Hakuba says, turning the corner to meet them halfway. He pauses, briefly, to offer a small nod of acknowledgement to Aoko, and continues.

"There's a secret here," Kaito says. "And I want to figure out what it _is."_

Hakuba gives him a dry look. "You're not going to figure it out by having us search _cereal boxes_ though, will you?"

He knows. Jeez, there's no need to get all _functional_ on him about figuring things out, even if Hakuba is his go to guy for mysteries that need to be solved. He's always been a bore, unravelling mysteries for fun and taking the magic from life.

"Alright then genius," Kaito says, "you used to be a detective, go do _detective work_ and give me answers."

Perhaps it's for the better that Hakuba's eyes are almost hidden from behind his mask. From the twist of his lips, it's not difficult to assume the glare is poisonous that even Kaito, who'd grown up trialling poisons to make sure none could kill him, would wither.

Of course, the rule with Hakuba: Don't remind him of his pre-piracy days back when he'd been _one of them_.

"I'll get right on it," Hakuba says. The words are sharp, makes Kaito briefly aware of the fact that the man still keeps knives in his boots in case he ever needs them. "Utilise Koizumi-san, she's probably wanting to do some investigating too."

"Right," Kaito says. And then, to initiate the call: "Akako."

"I must admit, I watched your conversation with the Captain." She says as she connects to the line. Kaito can imagine her grinning down. "He's quite the confident type, isn't he?"

Aoko connects to the call too, although connecting for her includes reaching into her pocket to receive her ear piece. She says, "he's cocky."

"I always enjoy bringing down the cocky types," Akako says. "I've been watching them all like you asked, but so far, they're the perfect prisoners."

"Think you can dig through facial recognition software and intergalactic databases to find their profiles?"

Akako scoffs, offended.

"If there ever reaches a day where I can't find a backdoor into any of the databases, then I'll let you turn me in for the reward money so you can hire someone with _adequate_ skills."

"So you'll do it?" Kaito says.

"You'll owe me another favour," Akako says, as if her favours mean anything. Typically she just sends him for either beauty products or tech parts to add to her ongoing collection. "But I'll do it."


	5. Chapter 5

The  _S.S Pandora._

Originally stolen by Kuroba Toichi, the first KID, during the galactic revolution, it’s the only space vessel that Kaito has ever considered flying. He’d grown up travelling on it, had even spent months planning the heist to reclaim it following his father’s death over a decade ago.

Leaving Hakuba to his manual-search, and Akako to her database-search, he crosses back over to  _his_ ship, the walkway short following their timely arrival on board the government ship. Not to big himself up, but the parking had been nothing short of genius in ensuring quick boarding.

Hakuba has said it was practically crashing the thing, getting close enough that the metal panels of  _Pandora_ would scrape against the metal of the other ship, but the most they’d suffered, was slight scratch work. Nothing major - easily fixed.

It’d make it easier to board and to take control of the ship before the Captain’s men could react.

Not that they’d had to, what with the crew having disappeared, leaving only their three hostages.

Perhaps it’s bias speaking, but his own ship is more comforting, lacking the eerie substance that their commandeered ship does. As he makes his way down towards the storage decks, helping his crew with transporting goods across the ships, it’s easy to relax into the vibrancy of the place.

There’s an energy in the  _Pandora_ that can be seen in the way people kick their legs as they walk, in the way people rush to their stations but without  _urgency._ They’re a crew of forty-three, but they’re efficient enough that they can do the work of a ship double the size. Hardworking, Kaito respects every member he works with.

They offer him short waves as he passes, grinning as they talk among themselves about what they’ve stolen from this ship. There’s a lot, Kaito knows, and he finds his own grin spreading across his lips. Even frustrated, he can still appreciate that they’ve gained a lot.

“KID,” the voice belongs to one of their engineers, Momoi Keiko. She wears a pair of overalls - loose on her figure - that are covered in grime, the result of hours down in maintenance. She waves him across, and so Kaito pauses, lowers the box he’d been carrying in and jogging over to her. “This ship was a rare find.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” Keiko says, nodding her head. She lifts up a tablet after a second, although he wouldn’t describe it as a tablet as such. It’s more a small screen, as thin as a sheet. When she presses her finger against the screen, it lights up. “They had a box of these onboard, unused. The box was covered in dust, but this is top galactic federation equipment.”

“Oh shit,” Kaito says, leaning forwards. He watches as the screen loads, Keiko pushing her pointer finger across and tapping until finally it projects light, an image above it as if it’s some sort of hologram. “I’ve not seen this outside of-”

Keiko answers what he can’t: “Outside of the capital.”

Good, Akako would have a field day with this kind of tech. He wonders if she’d be able to hack into it, whether she had access to them as a child.

“And that’s not all,” Keiko continues, “these holograms? We took this picture when we were down in storage.”

Squinting, Kaito tries to register what he’s seeing. What looks like hundreds of tanks, each of them clearly marked to be fuel - enough to power Kaito’s ships for at least a year and a half, even if they used their engines full throttle.

“This ship is under the federation,” Kaito says, “why does it have excess fuel on board? The federation hates excess. They’d much rather they dock into a station and refuel than give them this much.”

Keiko shrugs. “I’m not sure, but it helps us out a  _lot._ We won’t need to do the station heist we were talking about now.”

Which is a good, Kaito knows. There’s always fatalities, losses that cannot be rationalised. It’s a risk he’s glad to be without.

“What does this mean though?” he asks, although he’s not sure there’s an answer, not really. “For that ship?”

Furrowing her brow, Keiko lifts her hand up to her lips, trying to think. Her eyes are curious behind the frames of her glasses, but there’s no spark of an answer. She says, “I’m not one hundred percent, but I’d say that this ship we’ve taken over is direct from the capital - and it’s an important one too.”

Kaito’s beginning to get that feeling too.

“You wouldn’t be able to tell from the model of it though,” Keiko continues, squinting as she looks back down at the tablet. “It’s about a century old - They stopped commissioning them over sixty years ago. Before the first takeover.”

Something cold slithers down Kaito’s spine. He says, “they want this ship to be inconspicuous then?”

“Maybe,” she agrees. After a pause, she turns the light of the tablet off, the hologram disappearing in a flash. “You can take this one down to Koizumi when you get the chance, she never opens her doors for any of my engineers, and I doubt I’ll have any time to deliver it if we’re going to be transferring that fuel to our ship.”

Kaito takes the tablet, slipping it into his jacket pocket.

“Thanks,” he says, “I’ll take it down soon - keep me updated if you find anything else that’s a little… concerning.”

A nod. Nothing else, and Kaito moves back to the box he’d been carrying, only pausing when he hears a familiar buzz of static that’s Akako connecting into his feed.

“Akako,” he says by way of greeting. “You’re connecting at the right time. I’ve got a present for you. Tell me you’ve got one back for me, too?”

“That’s not how presents work.” She says. He can imagine the sardonic twist to her lips as she says it. “But I do have… something for you. You’ll come down?”

“Give me ten minutes.”


	6. Chapter 6

"You're still on the old deck, right?"

He asks it even though he knows that she is. Akako hasn't left the 'old deck' off level four for since she'd been offered a room down there her first day onboard. Sometimes, she might joke about leaving the place, but she's not in the entire time he's known her.

Still, sometimes he holds onto hope that she might.

Not that he'll blame her, sometimes, Kaito doesn't exactly feel like leaving the control room, wanting to remain behind the controls for as long as possible. He wouldn't exactly call it healthy, but it's understandable.

Akako, as expected, hums out a yes. Then, "you know what, I think with a nice coat of paint, we wouldn't need to call it the old deck anymore."

It's not exactly hard to find the old deck. Level four is known as the ghost deck, the first deck on the _Pandora_ to receive refurbishments when Kaito's father had taken it over thirty-two years ago. It had been beautiful once, when Kaito had been a kid, bright and vibrant, with little droids that helped clean the dust that sifted into the corners.

Then, they'd killed his father, reclaimed the _Pandora_ and started stripping it for parts.

The old deck, once the brightest, is the one that Kaito hasn't been able to refurbish yet. A maze of halls, the most rooms on the ship, there's still too much space to fill. Only Akako's den at the very back, past all the dust and broken droids, is up-to-date.

Akako has never directly enjoyed participating in civil niceties. Kaito thinks that's why she's hidden away so far.

"Make sure not to trip over the wires this time," Akako says, the faint tilt of amusement in her voice. Of course she'd remember - with access to all the cameras on board, she always seems to know whenever he does something stupid.

What a stalker.

"Yeah, yeah," Kaito says, rolling his eyes. He wonders if her cameras can pick up on such a micro-expression. He wonders if he cares enough to ask. "Whatever."

He normally walks through the decks pretty slowly, taking his time at an even pace, but there's something about the old deck that leaves his footsteps quickening. Maybe because of the way it's barren now, the dead remains of his father's legacy.

All ships have their ghosts, and this is where they live on this one.

"You're moping," Akako says.

"Not moping," Kaito says, and he flicks the chain on his monocle, lets the chain bounce back off his cheek. "Just thinking."

"You shouldn't do that too much," Akako says, "I've heard you can strain unused muscles if you overstretch yourself."

"If you're trying to offend me," Kaito says, a twitch pulling at his lips, "then you're going to have to try harder."

"Oh Kuroba-kun? This isn't me trying."

He supposes he should just let it slide, and so he does, humming as he presses on. He doesn't particularly care for Akako's teasing, but he supposes that he doesn't much like the alternative. Eh, he probably shouldn't start thinking about it.

"Unlock your door for me, alright?" Kaito says, "I don't want to have to wait outside while you finish hacking into whatever, because you forgot to open the door during a quiet moment."

She doesn't deny that she's stuck in a quiet moment. Probably because Akako wouldn't be talking to him during her work. It's difficult focusing on breaking through firewalls when they’re in the middle of conversation.

"Ugh," she says, as if it's more than just a mild inconvenience, "fine, my yoga can wait until after you come anyway."

Kaito rolls his eyes again, this time, while he's looking up at the camera.

"It's open," she says, "but lock it when you come in, I always feel safer with it locked."

A nod.

When he reaches Akako's room, he knocks twice, pushes the door open and forcibly makes a point to step over the bundle of wires that frame the entrance. Akako's room is a technological haven, something she's spent the last four years developing, a mixture of human and alien technology, of both old and new, illegal and galactic.

"You have something?" He asks, closing the door behind him. He turns the lock, listens to it click before stepping further inside. It used to be a rec room once, a playroom. Now, it's been converted with wires, into Akako's personal quarters.

Inside the room seems almost split into two. A small ladder near the door, leads past an alcove up to Akako's 'room', the high-ceiling making it capable of stretching inside and still being unable to reach the top. Her bed and yoga equipment remain up there, and the remains of an old exercise bike that they'd salvaged from an old recycle centre when they were last on-planet.

She's not up there though, but rather downstairs, amongst all the techy-crap she's so intrigued by.

"Files," Akako says, and he follows her voice, towards her main desk, and the multiple monitors that grace it. "Although there's not much we can learn from them."

"Names?"

She pauses, hesitates. And then, lifting a hand, beckons him closer, "just come look."

Kaito looks.

Across three of the monitors are personnel-files. Each one depicts the faces of their hostages, their faces serious as if they'd been told they weren't allowed to smile. Surprisingly, they're just headshots, no full shot of them within their military uniforms

No broadcasted ranks? Odd.

No, that's not what he's focusing on. He doesn't care about ranks at the moment, no, he's after their files. The one that the galactic federation has created for them, something that gives an indication into who they ar-

He feels his blood go cold.

"Akako," he says, slowly. "What the fuck is this?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My morning routine while I'm in NYC is working on this in the morning while I wait for my mother to get ready. Here's the next part before I go sightseeing for the day. Happy Independence Day to all those in the states!

The bold letters along the case file reading _redacted_ leaves Kaito feeling like his blood is below freezing point.

It's not possible.

The galactic federation doesn't erase people from their files. In a society like theirs, with a system as paranoid and corrupt as Kaito knows them to be, he can't imagine them just leaving files to go blank. Not for their officers. They don't even do that for their secret agents - simply remake the file into something new with hidden codes inside leaving them interpretable for those who know what to look for.

No rank. No identity. No progress.

For all purposes, their hostages are non-existent.

Well - mostly. The captain's - although, is he even really a captain, or does he just wear the uniform of one - quartermaster's have the barest backbone of information on their file. No information, no address or home planet, but there is a small section labelled, _aliases_.

'Hattori', and 'Toyama'.

Names from the Milky Way galaxy, although Kaito was pretty sure these Earthen family names started to die out a few centuries ago. Just rare then, he supposes.

"So we have two names." Kaito says, lifting his hand to rub against his chin, trying to think. He reaches up, to his monocle, to a small button that's just at the top and pushes down. It's tiny, you'd have to know it was there to see the small bump in the casing. The monocle captures the image, and when he turns, the names linger in his vision, lit in a soft blue colour.

"But none for the captain." Akako sighs. "I had to dig deep for even their aliases, and his file showed nothing. If there are any files on these three, then it's most likely in an offline format, back in the capital's archives."

"Right," Kaito says, and tries to think. "So we won't be getting the captain's name through any research means then."

"It seems not."

"Then lets do it the old fashioned way then." Kaito says. He leans back, away from the monitors to look at Akako. For a moment, she hesitates, shoulders tensing up under the weight of his stare, and then, she loosens up.

"And that is?"

"Through good old trickery of course," Kaito says. "No one's talked to the quartermasters yet, right? I think it's about time we do."

Akako's eyes reflect light, dancing red beneath the blue tint of her monitor screens, blending and mixing together to a plum-like hue. She says, "if we know two names, then what's to say we don't know the third."

"Exactly," Kaito says. "I'm heading back over. Let Hakuba know that I'm expecting to see him down there."

Lifting a hand, Akako shoos him away. She says, "I'm not an errand girl you know."

"No," Kaito says, and he places the tablet Keiko had passed him earlier her desk, "but you do get a share of what we get, so - in a way you're being paid."

"They brought in ice cream," she says, shrugging her shoulders, "have Aoko-chan, bring some down next time she visits, won't you?"

Kaito rolls his eyes. Aoko would have brought something sweet with her regardless. Even if he's their leader, Kaito has little control over what his best friend, and co-leader, does.

"Sure, whatever," he says. He heads back out into the corridor, clicks his tongue against as he tries to think. "Do you think you can break into the ships mainframe, and get access to the system recordings of transmissions?"

"Only if I was on the ship itself."

"And you won't leave Pandora."

"See what you get from the quartermasters," Akako says. Her voice quivers. "If you don't get anything, then maybe."

It's more than she's offered before, Kaito doesn't know how to respond to it. It's probably for the best if he doesn't push it at all. With a final wave, he closes the door behind him, and heads back in the direction of the ships crossover.


	8. Chapter 8

Hakuba meets him just as he's stepping into the hold.

His arms are crossed, brows raised in the way they do when he wants to say something but is biting his tongue. Kaito lets him keep whatever it is to himself - if the guy isn't willing to say it outright, then it can't be all that important.

"We're going to do some interrogations," Kaito says, after a second, pausing in his step to watch the man's reaction to the words. "You used to be good at those, right?"

Hakuba shudders. He says, "I got by."

"Number one at extracting confessions," Kaito continues, "and you didn't even need to torture anyone, think you can do the same now?"

Hesitation. They already know that Hakuba doesn't really want to. But the man will, for his sake, because it's something Kaito is asking for, and he's in no position really, to refuse.

"I'll try," Hakuba says, frowning. "If you ask the questions, I'll get what I can."

"I want a name," he says, "anything else is a bonus. Anything you think of that can get us closer to it, then do it."

Hakuba nods, readjusts his mask, and follows Kaito into the cells where they've left the prisoners - Hattori and Toyama. Both still tied up, they sit inside reinforced glass cells rather than the barred cell that their captain had been placed in.

At their footsteps, the two glance up. Their eyebrows thread together into a look filled with venom, and rage, irritations that bleed out into the air, contaminating the air into something more toxic. Kaito ignores the looks - he's been dealt worse - and makes his way nearer to their cages.

Hakuba, stands beside him, back straight, shoulders pushed back, as he looks down his nose at the two. He's assessing them, Kaito knows, watching the way their muscles tense and their jaws grit together with their anger. He spots things that Kaito does not - not consciously - and he jots them down in his thoughts for later assessment.

He's trying, Kaito knows, to get a proper read of them, and their surrounding energies.

"We've got a few questions for you," Kaito says, crossing his arms. No response. "Hattori and Toyama right, those are your names? Things will go better for you, if you respond to what I say."

Toyama is the one to shift, to say anything. "Why should we respond, when you've taken us prisoner."

"It's in your best interests," Kaito says. She doesn't seem convinced, raising an eyebrow as she realises that probably, they still have the upper ground. All those secrets… "And in the best interests of your captain."

Hattori jerks.

"You better not have done anythin' to him."

Accented. They both speak with an accent that Kaito can't place - he tries to, but it must be from a planet he's not heard before. It's stronger on Hattori, more so that Toyama, but he hears it in her too. An uncommon planet… possibly one of the early planets, one that'd been long since overrun with military.

"Not yet," Kaito chirps, pushing his hands into his pockets. He wavers on his feet, loitering, forcing the control more in his own direction. A weakness for these two: They show too easily who they care for, where their loyalties lie.

Kaito would die without a second thought for his crew, but he would never give the impression of doing such a thing to those around him. Kaito cares, but to everyone else, KID can easily replace crew when they run out of use.

Someone should have taught these two that sometimes, the impression of cold and callous can be safer than protection and warm.

Oh well.

"But that can change," Kaito says. "You'll tell us what we want to know, right Hattori?"

Hattori exchanges a glance with Toyama, closes his eyes and says, "We ain't telling you shit."

Ah, a shame. Kaito doesn't like offering empty threats, but he also doesn't like filling them either. Maybe because as much of a criminal as he is, he doesn't really like harming people until his hand is pushed, until there's no other way.

"A shame," Hakuba says. "If you can't tell us anything, and he won't tell us anything, then there's no need for any of you."

Kaito turns. He slows himself, simply so he doesn't jerk to the side, watching Hakuba move. Where Hattori and Toyama are coiled anger, and Kaito is feigned nonchalance, frustrations bleeding through, Hakuba is relaxed.

In his element.

Hattori snarls, "what the fuck is that supposed to mean? If ya think you can kill us without us fightin' back, you're sorely mistaken."

Kaito goes to open his mouth, to say no one will be killing anyone else today thank you, but Hakuba simply shrugs. As if he's a sociopath or something, who doesn't care about dropping threats of murder into conversations.

He has to force himself not to shudder, tries to think of something else, forgetting the way his friend had been back when the capital still had their claws in him, back when he'd still been a detective, a-

Nope, not thinking of that today, either.

"It means that there's no use for you," Hakuba continues. "We don't keep things we have no use for, do we, KID?"

Ah, dragging him into it. Kaito hates when he does this. Now he's going to seem even more like the bad guy. Well, what the heck, if he's got to be the bad guy to know what the hell is going on with this ship, then so be it.

"Your captain," KID says, "will go first, an example to the both of you. Then, we'll be rid of the two of you."

Hattori growls. It's animalistic, feral, a sound that makes Kaito blink twice, trying to wrap his head around it. It's not a sound that just anyone would make, the way it vibrates through his throat, the way it festers around his tongue like a raging animal.

He's not human.

He can't be.

"We'll fight back." Toyama claims. She's calmer, but not by much. If Kaito looks closer, he can see the hairs on her arms standing up, goosebumps spreading down her arms. Her muscles are posed to strike - they'll come for the glass first, Kaito has no doubt the two would be able to shatter it.

"You won't reach him in time," Hakuba says. "You can't win a race against the airlock once it's set off, after all."

Kaito shudders. Okay, so not only are they threatening murder, they're threatening to send their captain out into space, suffocating inside of the void, without a space suit. How lovely.

The threat works though, they can see it in the way Hattori's body freezes.

"You're bluffing."

"Am I?" Kaito asks. And then, "Akako."

She connects through the speakers. "Airlock override complete, systems ready to deploy whenever you wish KID. Should I release?"

Kaito offers his wildest grin towards the quartermasters, and says, "do it."

"Preparing to deploy airlock 2-b-"

"Wait- wait, wait!" Toyama throws herself forward, bites into her lip. "We'll talk, we'll tell you anything _please_ -"

"Stop it," Hattori adds, desperation leaking through, "you can't kill him please don't-"

"Akako," Kaito grins, "delay the release. As for you two, we're going to try this again - and just so you don't go lying to us, we'll start with something we all know. Our dear ole' Captain's _name_."


	9. Chapter 9

The room goes almost scarily silent.

In their cells, Hattori and Toyama take a moment, trying to think things over. Kaito can see their thoughts spreading through them, taking over and telling them this isn't something they should share. But at the same time, he can see the threat of the airlock lingering in their stares.

They won't risk the life of their captain, but they don't want to give the information out either.

"Hurry now," Kaito says, impatience bleeding through his vocal cords, biting into the air, "information for a life - you're really going to hesitate now?"

"Fine," Toyama says. She interlocks her fingers together to stop them from shaking. "Fine - his name is Hirai Arthur, okay? Just- just don't-"

Something about that name seems almost fake. But with a life on the line would they necessarily risk-

"No," Hakuba sighs, shaking his head. "Akako - airlock?"

Kaito crosses his arms, clicks his tongue. "You two think you can lie to us? We already know."

Hakuba leans forward, squinting. For a moment, Kaito can see Hakuba's own hands shaking, before he pushes them into his pockets. He says, "There's only _one truth_ here that you can give, so hand it over. And he lives."

Hattori pales.

Toyama looks faintly, like she might vomit. She hides her mouth behind her hand, curling in on herself to keep the gasp inside her lungs.

"No," Hattori says, "there's no way you could know."

Kaito doesn't really know what the fuck they're reacting to, doesn't see the importance in a sentence based around there being only a single truth, but there must be some. He's glad Hakuba's been able to pick up on it, to pick up on the words that have gone unsaid, stuck inside their heads.

"We've got our ways," Kaito says. "Now, I thought I asked for you to be truthful with us? You're not going to lie now, are you?"

The two shudder.

"Kudo Shinichi," Hattori says. "But you already knew that."

Kaito spares a side glance at Hakuba, takes comfort in the half-nod he receives. So this is the truth - and oh, well, with the way _Shinichi_ can be written, it makes sense for them to be freaked. Trust Hakuba to dig enough into getting a phrase that could help.

"Good," Kaito says. "Now, tell me everything. And be honest this time."

**Author's Note:**

> The author loves comments.


End file.
